Managing fleet of output devices and detecting change in operations thereof

ABSTRACT

Systems, apparatuses, applications, methodologies and other tools for managing a fleet of output devices are configured to determine whether a substantial change in operations of the fleet of output devices has occurred, based on a comparison of a normal state of plural fleet metrics determined for the fleet over a predetermined period of time with a current state of the plural fleet metrics. When such a change is detected, an alert notification is generated and transmitted to a specified alert destination. Further, the alert notification may include a user-operable part to request a summary of the changes to the fleet as a whole or to operations of the fleet as a whole.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to systems, apparatuses, methodologies and othertools for managing a fleet of output devices, and more specifically,such tools including provisions to detect a substantial change inoperations of the fleet of output devices.

BACKGROUND

In the current information age, information technology (IT) assets(e.g., hardware, software, database, etc.) are extensively used inenterprises and other organizations in order to facilitate processing ofdocuments and data and to allow users to access other functionalitiesand devices (such as computers, printers, scanners, multi-functiondevices (MFDs) and other network-connected or standalone devices, etc.).However, while there have been many technical advances, IT systems arenot yet fully automated and capable of self-maintenance, without humanintervention. Thus, in each IT system, IT administrators typicallymonitor and manage the devices in the system.

Device management tools (such as application software, etc.) areavailable to enable the administrators to track, monitor and otherwisemanage the devices from remotely. However, the number of networkeddevices that must be managed is generally increasing and the typical ITadministrator is required to oversee a growing number of IT assets.Administrators typically focus on specific devices for which theyreceive a notification of a need for servicing or maintenance. However,in addition to such localized issues which an administrator cantypically handle (with greater competence as the administrator gainsexperience, an administrator must also be concerned if there is afleet-wide problem or circumstance. On the other hand, there is a dearthof conventional tools that provide automated monitoring for fleet-wideproblems or issues.

SUMMARY

Various tools (for example, a system, an apparatus, applicationsoftware, a method, etc.) can be configured to detect a substantialchange in operations of a fleet of output devices. Such tools facilitatea new process of monitoring a fleet of output devices via various fleetmetrics. That is, the tools disclosed herein allow for the detection ofa substantial change in such fleet metrics (e.g., by comparison ofcurrent state to normal state), and then causes an alert notification tobe generated and transmitted to a specified alert destination. Althoughsuch tools may notify upon a major swing in a single parameter, thealert circumstance in many instances may be based on a combination ofmultiple fleet metrics.

Such tools are particularly useful when the fleet of managed devices aresubject to multiple changes on a regular basis, such as in operations,in configuration, etc. In such system, one or more servers or appliancesor other data collection provisions may be provided to discover devices,collect data and detect and keep track of all changes, and when there isa large increase or decrease in various fleet metrics, such change isnotified in a form of a dashboard and an alert to a notificationdestination. For example a device management application in the systemcan be configured (e.g., via user profiles) to display suchnotifications, information collected, a user interface for settingthresholds, etc., upon connection. The user interface may be configuredto include, in addition to display of alert notifications, one or moredashboard gauges that show a comparison of normal state and currentstate for various fleet metrics.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The aforementioned and other aspects, features and advantages can bemore readily understood from the following detailed description withreference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1A shows a block diagram of a system that can include variousprovisions to manage a fleet of devices (e.g., output devices, etc.),according to an embodiment of this disclosure;

FIG. 1B shows a block diagram of a system that can include variousprovisions to manage a fleet of devices, according to another embodimentof this disclosure;

FIG. 1C shows a block diagram of a system that can include variousprovisions to manage a fleet of devices, according to another embodimentof this disclosure;

FIG. 1D shows a block diagram of a system that can include variousprovisions to manage a fleet of devices, according to another embodimentof this disclosure;

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of an example of a configuration of acomputing device that can be configured by software to operate as adevice management apparatus or device management server;

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of an example of a configuration of a hostterminal for a device management application;

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of an example of a configuration of amulti-function output device;

FIG. 5 shows a flow chart of a method that can be performed in any ofthe systems shown in FIGS. 1A-1D (or an equivalent);

FIG. 6 shows an example of an alert notification provided in a devicemanagement application, in any of the systems shown in FIGS. 1A-1D (oran equivalent);

FIG. 7 shows a flow chart of a method that can be performed in any ofthe systems shown in FIGS. 1A-1D (or an equivalent);

FIGS. 8A and 8B show examples of user interface screens provided by adevice management application, in any of the systems shown in FIGS.1A-1D (or an equivalent);

FIG. 9 shows a flow chart of a method that can be performed in any ofthe systems shown in FIGS. 1A-1D (or an equivalent);

FIGS. 10A-10E show examples of user interface screens provided by adevice management application, in any of the systems shown in FIGS.1A-1D (or an equivalent);

FIG. 11 shows a flow chart of a method that can be performed in any ofthe systems shown in FIGS. 1A-1D (or an equivalent).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Various tools to facilitate device management are discussed herein, withreference to examples and embodiments. It should be appreciated by thoseskilled in the art that any one or more of such tools may be embedded ina device management application, server or system and/or in any ofvarious other ways, and thus while various examples and embodiments arediscussed herein, the inventive aspects of this disclosure are notlimited to such examples and embodiments described herein.

In describing preferred embodiments illustrated in the drawings,specific terminology is employed herein for the sake of clarity.However, this disclosure is not intended to be limited to the specificterminology so selected and it is to be understood that each specificelement includes all technical equivalents that operate in a similarmanner. In addition, a detailed description of conventional functionsand configurations is omitted from this specification when it mayobscure the inventive aspects described herein.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designateidentical or corresponding parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1Ashows schematically a system 100A that includes a data managementapparatus 20, a device management apparatus 10, a terminal 104 thathosts a device management application 104 a, and an output device 105.The data management apparatus 20, the device management apparatus 10,the terminal 104 and the output device 105 are connected to network 107.

The data management apparatus 20 includes a device data managementmodule 101 that maintains a device data database 102. Otherwise, thedata management apparatus 20 can be configured like a typical computingdevice, such as discussed infra with reference to FIG. 2.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1A, the device data management module101 maintains the device database 102 and communicates with outputdevices (e.g., output device 105) via the network 107, to obtain devicedata from the output devices. After obtaining the device data, thedevice data management module 101 registers such device data into thedevice database 102. The device data management module 101 may performone or more calculations based on the device data. For example, thedevice data management module 101 may conduct a statistical analysis ofthe device data. In another example the device data management module101 may consolidate the device data received from one or more devicesinto a summary.

The device data registered in the device database 102 may include, forexample, for each output device connected to the network 107, deviceproperties information (e.g., device name, device model, devicelocation, port, MAC address, IP address, etc.) and/or device operationsinformation (e.g., print volume, color print volume, scan volume, deviceconnection status, etc.). Further, the device data may also includeanalyzed device information, such as, for example, a summary (e.g., ofprint volume, total number of devices, total number of device by type,total usage, etc.) that corresponds to the fleet out of output devices(or for each device) for a predetermined period of time (e.g., one ormore days, one or more weeks, one or more months, a year, etc.). Inanother example, the analyzed device information may also includestatistical analysis (e.g., of print volume, total number of devices,total number of device by type, total usage, etc.) that corresponds tothe fleet of output devices (or for each device) for a predeterminedperiod of time.

The device management apparatus 10 can be configured by software on atypical computing device (such as discussed infra with reference to FIG.2), to include a fleet management module 103. Such fleet managementmodule 103 monitors a fleet of output devices and determines fleetmetrics of the fleet as a whole. Such fleet metrics may be calculatedbased on (i) the device data stored in the device database 102 and/or(ii) device data collected from the fleet of output devices. The fleetmetrics may correspond to a variety of categories. For example, fleetmetrics may include values corresponding to number of output devicessurpassing allocated print volume, percentage of print volume excess,number of output devices added to the fleet, number of service calls,number of managed devices disconnected from the network 107, etc.

After fleet metrics have been determined, the fleet management module103 computes a current state value using the fleet metrics previouslycalculated. The fleet metrics may not all be the same units (e.g.,meter, kilogram, ampere, kelvin, second, service calls, print volume,etc.) or even the same decimal unit prefix (e.g., milli, micro, kilo,mega, etc.). Thus, the fleet management module 103 may convert (orscale) such values corresponding to the fleet metrics into unit-lessvalues. Such current state value can then be computed from suchunit-less values. There may be other ways by which the fleet metrics canbe converted into unit-less values.

Next, the current state value is compared with a predetermined alertthreshold (that may be set by an administrator) to determine whetherchanges, if any, to the fleet or fleet operations exceed thepredetermined alert threshold. If the changes are substantial enough(i.e. the current state value exceeds the predetermined alertthreshold), the fleet management module sends out an alert notificationto, for example, an alert destination (e.g., administrator, serviceprovider, etc.). For example, the alert notification may notify of asubstantial change in the fleet of output devices and/or the specificsof a detected problem or potential problem (e.g., too much printingperformed, overloading network with too many devices, large number ofdisconnected devices, etc.).

A device management application 104 a may be provided on or to the hostterminal 104 to allow the user of the client terminal 104 to determinestatus of the fleet of output devices. Such application may be a nativeprogram installed on the host terminal 104, or may be provided from anexternal source as an application and/or as part of a platform, or maybe provided as a service (e.g., software as a service, i.e. SaaS).

The information provided by the device management application 104 a tothe user may include, for example, the total number of devices in thefleet, device properties (e.g., device name, device model, device type,device ID, MAC address, IP address, etc.) of each device, deviceoperations information (e.g., print volume, scan volume, consumableslevel, etc.), and summary information (e.g., print volume of fleet as awhole, total number of devices, total number of device by type, totalusage, etc.).

Further, the user interface provided by the device managementapplication 104 a on the client terminal 101 may include a dashboardgauge that indicates current state fleet metrics and normal state fleetmetrics. Current state fleet metrics indicate the fleet metrics are atthe present moment, while normal state fleet metrics indicates the fleetmetrics over a predetermined period of time (e.g., average value).Generally, current state fleet metrics are expected to be different fromnormal state fleet metrics by less than the threshold amount. The valuecompared to a threshold may be a difference between a current statevalue and the normal state value of a specific metric, or it may be adifference between current state and normal state as to a set ofmetrics. The current state fleet metrics may be represented as a graph(or chart) side-by-side with a graph (or chart) of the normal statefleet metrics.

In a case that there is substantial change in the fleet of outputdevices (i.e. current state value exceeds the predetermined alertthreshold), the device management application 104 a may present alertnotifications that the client terminal 104 has received from the fleetmanagement module 103. Such alert notifications may alternatively oradditionally be presented via text, SMS, e-mail, social networking apps,etc. Thus, the alert notifications may be displayed nearly in real timeon the client terminal 104. In another example, the user may retrievesuch notifications (such as via the user interface of the devicemanagement application, or another application).

The output device 105 may be, for example, an MFP, a printer, afacsimile machine, a scanner, etc. Further, the terms “printer” and“printer device” are used hereinafter generically to include any outputdevice having a printing or plotting functionality, and includemultifunction devices having a copy and/or scanning functionality inaddition to the printing or plotting functionality.

The network 107 can be a local area network, a wide area network or anytype of network such as an intranet, an extranet (for example, toprovide controlled access to external users, for example through theInternet), a private or public cloud network, the Internet, etc., or acombination thereof. In addition, the network 105 preferably uses TCP/IP(Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), but other protocolssuch as SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) and HTTP (HypertextTransfer Protocol) can also be used. How devices can connect to andcommunicate over networks is well known in the art and is discussed forexample, in “How Networks Work”, by Frank J. Derfler, Jr. and Les Freed(Que Corporation 2000) and “How Computers Work”, by Ron White, (QueCorporation 1999), the entire contents of each of which are incorporatedherein by reference.

FIG. 1B shows schematically a system 100B, according to anotherembodiment. The system 100B is similar to the system 100A except thatthe system 100B includes a device management server 201 in place of datamanagement apparatus 20 and device management apparatus 10.

The device management server 201 a includes a device data managementmodule 201 a (similar to device data management module 101) and a fleetmanagement module 201 b (similar to fleet management module 103). It isnot necessary to have the device data management module 201 a and thefleet management module 201 b be separated from each other. They can becombined inside the device management server 201 instead.

The application user interface 104 a-1 displays to the user informationthat the device management application 104 a receives from the devicemanagement server 201. For example, the device management application104 a may present a dashboard gauge via the application user interface104 a-1 on the client terminal. Such dashboard gauge may include acomparison between the normal state and the current state, as to fleetmetrics, in the form of graphs, charts, tables, etc. In addition, thedashboard gauge may be manipulated by the user of the client terminal104 to present information in a format that is preferred or needed bythe user. Further, the dashboard gauge provided by the device managementapplication 104 a may also include means for the user to viewinformation as to the fleet of devices, such as indicating substantialchanges to fleet metrics.

Otherwise, operations of the elements of the system 100B are similar tothose discussed in connection with corresponding elements of the system100A of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1C shows schematically a system 100C for providing output (e.g.,print, scan, copy, fax, etc.) services, according to another embodiment.The system 100C is similar to the system 100B except that in system100C, module 105 a is embedded in the output device 105.

The embedded module 105 a may collect device data from the output device105 and send the collected data to the device management server 201,with or without having stored the device data temporarily in localstorage. The collected data may be provided to the device managementserver 201 on demand, based on a schedule or on another regular basis.Additionally or alternatively, the device management server 201 maycommunicate (either on demand or on a regular or scheduled basis) withthe output device 105 to acquire device data from the output device 105.In response, the embedded module 105 a may collect the request devicedata and send it to the device management server 201. In this case, itmay be that the embedded module 105 a does not stored the device datainto the internal storage of the output device 105. Instead, theembedded module 105 a sends the device data immediately to the devicemanagement server 201 after said device data has been collected withoutstoring the device data afterwards.

Otherwise, operations of the elements of the system 100C are similar tothose discussed in connection with corresponding elements of the system100B of FIG. 1B.

FIG. 1D shows schematically a system 100D, according to anotherembodiment. The system 100D is similar to the system 100B except thatsystem 100D additionally includes a device data collection apparatus 106and the output device 105 is not connected to the network 107 in anyway.

The device data collection apparatus 106 may obtain information (e.g.,device data) on demand or on a regular or scheduled basis from each ofthe output devices (e.g., 105) to which the device data collectionapparatus 106 is connected. For example, the device data collectionapparatus 106 may manage a plurality of output devices that correspondto a particular grouping (e.g., physical location, department, devicemodel, device type, etc.) and collect relevant data from each of theoutput devices. In another embodiment, after collecting the relevantdata from each of the output devices, the device data collectionapparatus 106 may send the collected data to the device managementserver 201. In another embodiment, the device data collection apparatus106 may parse through the collected data and send only data that thedevice data collection apparatus 106 has determined to be pertinent tothe device management server 201.

Otherwise, operations of the elements of the system 100D are similar tothose discussed in connection with corresponding elements of the system100B of FIG. 1B.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary constitution of a computing device that can beconfigured (for example, through software) to operate (at least in part)as a data management apparatus (e.g., 20 in FIG. 1A), a devicemanagement apparatus (e.g., 10, in FIG. 1A), and/or a device managementserver (e.g., 201, in FIGS. 1B, 1C, 1D). In FIG. 2, apparatus 200includes a processor (or central processing unit) 202 that communicateswith a number of other components, including memory or storage device203, other input/output (e.g., keyboard, mouse, etc.) 204, display 205and network interface 206, by way of a system bus 201. The apparatus 200may be a special-purpose device (such as including application specificintegrated circuits or an appropriate network of conventional componentcircuits) or it may be software-configured on a conventional personalcomputer or computer workstation with sufficient memory, processing andcommunication capabilities to operate as a terminal and/or server, asshould be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art. Theprocessor 202, memory/storage 203, input/output 204, display 205 andnetwork interface 206 are conventional, and therefore in order to avoidobfuscating the inventive aspects of this disclosure, such conventionalaspects are not discussed in detail herein.

The apparatus 200 includes the network interface 206 for communicationsthrough a network, such as communications through the network 107.However, it should be appreciated that the subject matter of thisdisclosure is not limited to such configuration. For example, theapparatus 200 may communicate with user terminals through directconnections and/or through a network to which some components are notconnected. As another example, the apparatus 200 does not need to beprovided by a server that services terminals, but rather may communicatewith the devices on a peer basis, or in another fashion.

The apparatus 200 of the present disclosure is not limited to a serveror computer, but can be manifested in any of various devices that can beconfigured to communicate over a network and/or the Internet.

The terminal 104 (FIGS. 1A-1D) can be any computing device, includingbut not limited to a tablet or notebook computer, a workstationcomputer, a PDA (personal digital assistant), a mobile phone or handset,another mobile information terminal, etc., that can communicate withother devices through the network 107. An exemplary constitution of theclient device 104 of FIGS. 1A-1D is shown schematically in FIG. 3. InFIG. 3, terminal 300 includes a processor (or central processing unit)302 that communicates with various other components, such as memory(and/or other storage device) 303, display 304, application software305, input/output (such as keyboard, mouse, touchpad, stylus, microphoneand/or speaker with voice/speech interface and/or recognition software,etc.) 306 and network interface 307, by way of an internal bus 301.

The memory 303 can provide storage for program and data, and may includea combination of assorted conventional storage devices such as buffers,registers and memories [for example, read-only memory (ROM),programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), electrically erasablePROM (EEPROM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random accessmemory (DRAM), non-volatile random access memory (NOVRAM), etc.].

The network interface 307 provides a connection (for example, by way ofan Ethernet connection or other network connection which supports anydesired network protocol such as, but not limited to TCP/IP, IPX,IPX/SPX, NetBEUI, etc.) to the network to which the computer 300 isconnected (e.g., network 107 of FIGS. 1A-1D).

Additional aspects or components of the computer 300 are conventional(unless otherwise discussed herein), and in the interest of clarity andbrevity are not discussed in detail herein. Such aspects and componentsare discussed, for example, in “How Computers Work”, by Ron White (QueCorporation 1999), and “How Networks Work”, by Frank J. Derfler, jr. andLes Freed (Que Corporation 2000), the entire contents of each of whichare incorporated herein by reference.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of a configuration of an output deviceas an MFP (multi-function printer or multi-function peripheral) device.The output device 400 shown in FIG. 4 includes a controller 402, andvarious elements connected to the controller 402 by an internal bus 401.The controller 402 controls and monitors operations of the output device400. The elements connected to the controller 402 include storage 403(for example, random access memory, read-only memory, hard disk drive,portable storage media drive such as for optical discs, magnetic discs,magneto optical discs, etc., semiconductor memory cards, combinations ofstorage media, etc.), scanning 404, printing 405, a network interface(I/F) 406, a user interface 407.

Storage 403 can include one or more storage parts or devices [e.g., aread only memory (for example, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM, etc.), a randomaccess memory (RAM), a hard disk drive (HDD), portable media (forexample, floppy disk, optical disc, magnetic discs, magneto-opticaldiscs, semiconductor memory cards, etc.) drives], and program codeinstructions can be stored in one or more parts or devices of storage403 and executed by the controller 402 to carry out the instructions.Such instructions can include instructions for performing specifiedfunctions (such as printing, scanning, faxing, copying, e-mailing, etc.)of the output device 400, to enable the output device 400 to interactwith a terminal, as well as perhaps other external devices, through thenetwork interface 407, and interactions with users through the userinterface 407.

The network interface 406 is utilized by the output device 400 tocommunicate via a network with other network-connected devices such as aterminal, a server and receive data requests, print (or other) jobs,user interfaces, and etc.

The user interface 407 includes one or more electronic visual displaysthat display, under control of controller 402, information allowing theuser of the output device 400 to interact with the output device 400.The electronic visual display can be any of various conventionaldisplays (such as a liquid crystal display, a plasma display device, acathode ray tube display, etc.), and may be a touch sensitive display(for example, liquid crystal display) and is configured to provide a GUI(graphical user interface) based on information input by an operator ofthe output device 400, so as to allow the operator to interactconveniently with services provided by or on the output device 400, orwith the output device 400 serving as terminal for accessing electronicdata or other content through the network. User interfaces or othercontents received through the network via the network interface 406 canbe displayed on the display screen.

Scanning 404, printing 405, and network interface 406 are otherwiseconventional, and therefore, a detailed description of such conventionalaspects is omitted in the interest of clarity and brevity. The outputdevice 400 can have any or all of the functions of similar devicesconventionally known, such as for scanning, editing and storing images,sending a fax, sending and receiving e-mails with or withoutattachments, accessing files by FTP or another protocol or facility,surfing the Web, scan-to-folder, scan-to-email, etc. Further,multi-functional devices or multi-function peripheral devices can play aprominent role to convert hardcopy documents to electronic documents.

FIG. 5 shows a method that can be performed by or with a devicemanagement server (e.g.,201 a).

The device management server may maintain a device database thatregisters data corresponding to a fleet of output devices (S500). Suchdata for each output device in the fleet may include, for example,information such as device properties (e.g., device model, device type,device name, MAC Address, IP Address) and device operations data (e.g.,print volume, etc.). In another example, the data may also include asummary of the device properties for the entire fleet, a summary ofoperations data for the entire fleet, statistical analysis of the fleet,recently added devices to the fleet, etc.

Periodically (e.g., daily, every two or more days, weekly, monthly,yearly, etc.), the device management server may determine whether thereare any substantial changes to the fleet of output devices, oroperations thereof, such as may negatively impact the fleet. Forexample, freely adding output devices to the network connecting thefleet of output devices may be problematic in that the network may beoverloaded, potentially causing a slowdown in communications. In anotherexample, users may be overusing one or more devices in the fleet,causing the allocated printing volume to be exceeded, therebysignificantly limiting the remaining life of the overused outputdevices. When such changes or modifications can possibly negativelyimpact the fleet as a whole, it may be necessary that an administratorbe notified.

Thus, to begin the process of determining whether any substantialchanges to the fleet of output device, the device management server mayobtain, via a network (e.g., 107), data for each device in the fleet(S501). For example, the data may be obtained from the device and wouldbe a more recent version of the data registered in the device database(which may be considered to be stale data). After the device managementserver obtains data from the device or retrieves the data from thedevice database, the device management server calculates fleet metricsusing the recently obtained data and the data stored in the devicedatabase (S502). The fleet metrics may include, but is not limited to,(i) print volume of the fleet as a whole over a particular period oftime, (ii) number of devices in the fleet that are have been recentlydiscovered over a particular period of time, (iii) number of devices inthe fleet that are have been recently disconnected over a particularperiod of time and (iv) number of service calls associated with outputdevices in the fleet. For example, the device management server maygenerate one or more values that corresponds to (i), (ii), (iii) and(iv), by using the recently acquired data from the output devices andthe data stored in the device database.

After calculating one or more fleet metrics, the device managementserver may then determine a current state value based on the one or morefleet metrics (S503). Such current state value may be, for example, asingle index representing the changes in the output fleet of devices andcalculated in any of various ways, such as using a numerical approach, ablackbox approach, a neural network, etc.

An example of a numerical approach may employ the following formula(although another numerical approach may alternatively be used).current state value=SQRT{[(CFM₁−FM₁)²/FM₁]+ . . .+[(CFM_(N)−FM_(N))²/FM_(N)}where CFM₁, . . . , CFM_(N) are current state fleet metrics 1 through N(N being a positive integer), and FM₁, . . . , FM_(N) are average valuesof fleet metrics 1 through N

To determine whether there is a substantial change, the devicemanagement server compares the current state value to a predeterminedalert threshold (S504). In one example, such predetermined alertthreshold may be a predetermined value that may be set by theadministrator. In the case that the current state value does not exceedthe predetermined alert threshold (S505, no), the device managementserver may determine that there are no substantial changes and return toits other processing, until the next predetermined period in which thedevice management server determines, once again, whether there are anysubstantial changes to the fleet of output devices.

On the other hand, in the case that the current state value does exceedthe predetermined alert threshold (S505, yes), the device managementserver creates an alert notification that includes information regardingmodifications to the fleet of output devices (S506). Next, the devicemanagement server sends the alert notification to a targeted destinationinforming a user that there is been a substantial change in the fleet(S507). For example, such targeted destination may be a client terminalbelonging to the user, as shown in FIG. 6.

In another example (FIG. 7), the device management server may determineif there is any substantial modifications to fleet operations, bycomparing the current state of the fleet to the normal state of thefleet. The normal state of the fleet may be based on fleet data over aspecified period of time, and such normal state may change depending onthe timeframe that is used to determine the normal state. The data thatis used to determine the normal state of the fleet may be stored in adevice database, or may be obtained from the devices periodically or ina continuous manner.

In the method shown in FIG. 7 which can be performed by or with a devicemanagement server (e.g., 201 a) to determine whether there is asubstantial change to fleet data, the device management server mayobtain, via a network (e.g., 107), data from each of the output devicesin the fleet (S701). The obtained data, for example, may correspond(e.g., a more recent version) to the data registered in the devicedatabase. The device management server may retrieve such data since thedata in the device database may be outdated. After obtaining the data,the device management server calculates current state fleet metricsusing the recently obtained data (S702). The fleet metrics may include,but is not limited to, (i) print volume of the fleet as a whole over aparticular period of time, (ii) number of devices in the fleet that arehave been recently discovered over the period of time, (iii) number ofdevices in the fleet that are have been recently disconnected over theperiod of time, (iv) number of service calls over the period of time,etc. The device management server may generate one or more values basedon the fleet metrics, by using the recently acquired data from theoutput devices.

After calculating the current state values, the device management servermay then calculate corresponding normal state values [e.g., (i) through(iv)] based on the data obtained from the device database (S703). Thenormal state fleet metrics may be calculated by (i) determining atimeframe (e.g., a year) that may be predetermined and (ii) computingthe average values (e.g., print volume for that year) that are withinsuch timeframe. That is, the average values may be considered torepresent the normal state in the fleet of output devices. The normalstate fleet metrics may be of different values depending on thetimeframe set. For example, setting the timeframe to a particular monthmay reveal that there have been an abundant of service calls. On theother hand, setting the timeframe to a year (including the particular)month may indicate that there have been not too many service calls.

After calculating both the current state fleet metric and the normalstate fleet metric, the device management server compares the calculatedone or more current state fleet metrics to the calculated one or morenormal state fleet metric by using a predetermined alert threshold(S704).

For example, the normal state fleet metrics may indicate that the printvolume of the fleet has averaged at 10,000 for a month, while thecurrent state fleet metrics may indicate that the print volume of thefleet over the past month is 10,500. It may be considered that there isno need to inform an administrator since the 5% difference does notwarrant further attention (such as when a substantial difference betweenthe normal state and the current state exceeds a predeterminedthreshold, such as 20%, 30%, 50%, 200%, etc.). When a valuecorresponding to such substantial difference exceeds a predeterminedthreshold, such difference suggests that a change in the fleetnecessitating user notification has taken place.

For example, the device management server may determine that there is asubstantial change for a fleet metric corresponding to a service callwhen the difference between the number of service calls in the normalstate fleet metric and the number of service calls in the current statefleet metric exceed the predetermined alert threshold which is “30” inthis case. Thus, in some instances, the normal state fleet metrics mayindicate that there have been “10” service calls for the past year forthe entire fleet, while the current state fleet metric indicates thatthere has been “15” service calls since the last time that data wasobtained from the fleet of output devices and stored in the devicedatabase, the device management server indicates that there has been nomodification since the difference value (“5”) does not exceed thepredetermined alert threshold (“30”). On the other hand, in a case thatthe current state fleet metric indicates that there has been “50”service calls since the last time that data was obtained from the fleetof output devices and stored in the device database, the devicemanagement server indicates that there has been a substantial changesince the difference (“40”) exceeds the predetermined alert threshold(“30”).

In the case that none of the comparisons between normal state fleetmetrics and current state fleet metrics indicate a substantial change tothe fleet of devices (S705, no), the device management server returns toits other processing, until the next predetermined period in which thedevice management server determines, once again, whether there are anysubstantial changes to the fleet of output devices. On the other hand,in the case that the current state value does exceed the predeterminedalert threshold (S705, yes), the device management server creates analert notification that includes information regarding specific fleetmetrics that have exceeded the predetermined alert threshold (S706) andsends such notification (S707).

The device management server may include in the alert notificationinformation regarding only those fleet metrics that have differencevalues which exceed the predetermined alert threshold, and thus theperson who receives the alert notifications may not be overwhelmed bythe amount of information corresponding to the fleet metrics, and maysimply view the specific fleet metrics that have substantial changes.

The alert notification may be a message that instantly appears on ascreen of the client terminal, such as shown in FIG. 8A. The alertnotification may inform the user of the client terminal that there areone or more problems in the fleet indicated by the calculated fleetmetrics. Further, the alert notification may inform the user he or shemay view these problems in detail by activating the “OK” button. In thecase that the user activates the “OK” button, the device managementapplication may cause a screen such as shown in FIG. 8B. As can be seen,not all of the fleet metrics that have been computed are shown to theuser of the client terminal. Instead, only fleet metrics whose valuescause the predetermined alert threshold to be exceeded are shown to theuser. By presenting only relevant fleet metrics, the user may not beoverwhelmed since there may be numerous fleet metrics. Further, the userof the client terminal may be shown the normal state fleet metrics andthe current state fleet metrics. The normal state fleet metrics, forexample, may include the average values of fleet metrics taken for themonths of April 2015-June 2015 while the current state fleet metrics mayinclude the average values of fleet metrics taken for the month of July2015. In another embodiment, the current state fleet metrics may includethe average values since the last time fleet metrics were calculated andrecorded.

FIG. 9 shows a method that can be performed by or with a devicemanagement application (e.g., 101 a) on a client terminal (e.g., 101),according to an embodiment.

Whenever the client terminal connects with the device management server(e.g., 201) (S900), the device management application may request thatthe device management server determine whether there are any changes tothe fleet of output devices (S901). Such determination may be automatedand transparent to the user. That is, the device management applicationmay make the request automatically every time the client terminalconnects with the device management server. Further, such determinationmay also include calculating the fleet metrics (both normal andcurrent). After performing the request, the client terminal may downloadthe fleet metrics after the device management server has finishedperforming the determination and calculations (S902). In anotherembodiment, the device management application does not request thedevice management server to determine whether there are any changes tothe fleet of output devices, and instead, the device managementapplication immediately downloads the fleet metrics from the devicemanagement server.

Next, after receiving the fleet metrics from the device managementserver, the device management application presents a dashboard gauge ona user interface screen (S903), such as shown in FIG. 10A. Suchdashboard gauge may include a comparison between the normal state fleetmetrics and the current state fleet metrics in the form of graphs,charts, tables, etc. In another embodiment, the device managementapplication may present the fleet metrics (normal state and currentstate), the difference values between the normal state and currentstate, and the alert threshold, such as shown in FIG. 10B. Suchdifference value may be a negative value, so as to illustrate how thechanges have occurred.

In another embodiment, the device management application may present agraphical chart of each of the fleet metrics individually, such as shownin FIG. 10C. For example, a bar graph of a particular fleet metric(e.g., service calls) comparing the normal state fleet metric to thecurrent state fleet metric may be presented. The user may switch toanother fleet metric (but stay on the same screen) by activating the twoarrow buttons that are on the left and right side of the screen (i.e.adjacent to the left and right of the graph). For example, by activingthe right arrow of the screen illustrating the fleet metric for “servicecalls”, the device management application causes the screen to nowpresent the fleet metric for “print volume” as shown in FIG. 10D

The fleet metrics need not always be presented the same way. Forexample, when the user views each of the fleet metrics individually,each of the fleet metrics may not always be presented in the same form.In the example shown in FIG. 10D, when the user activates the rightarrow button, the device management application presents a fleet metricfor “devices disconnected”, as shown in FIG. 10E. However, unlike theprevious fleet metrics (i.e. “service calls” and “print volume”), thefleet metric for “devices disconnected” is presented in a pie chartform. The reason for why each of the fleet metrics may be presentedusing different charts (and not all the same ones) is that it may bemore advantageous to present a fleet metric in one format over anotherin terms of information presentation.

In yet another embodiment, the dashboard gauge may be manipulated by theuser of the client terminal to present information in a format that ispreferred or needed by the user. For example, the user may instruct thedevice management application to present only the normal state fleetmetrics. In another example, the user may instruct the device managementapplication to present only the current state fleet metrics. In yetanother example the user may instruct device management application topresent difference values between the normal state fleet metrics and thecurrent state fleet metrics.

After presenting the dashboard gauge, the device management applicationmay also include within the dashboard gauge a way for the user to viewinformation regarding the specific aspects of the fleet that havesubstantially changed corresponding to particular fleet metrics (S904).For example, the device management server may have determined, via thenormal state fleet metrics and the current state fleet metrics, that (i)the print volume corresponding to the fleet has substantially changedand (ii) the number of service calls has increased to the point where ithas caused the fleet to substantially change. In such instance, onlyfleet metrics that have substantially changed may be presented.

FIG. 11 shows a method that can be performed by or with a devicemanagement server (e.g., 201), according to an embodiment.

The fleet metrics may be calculated using device data obtained from eachof the output devices. However, the fleet metrics may be in variousforms with different units of measurements. In fact some of the fleetmetrics may not even have units that correspond to the SI (SystemeInternational) units, such as service calls or print volume.Accordingly, after the device management server obtains the device datafrom each of the output devices (S1100), the device management serverscales each of the device data according to a predetermined scalingvalue (S1101). Such predetermined scaling value may be set by anadministrator. By performing operations on the predetermined scalingvalue and the device data, the device management server can obtain oneor more scaled device data. Next, the device management servercalculates the fleet metrics using the scaled device data (S1102). Theoperations for calculating the fleet metrics may include averaging thevalues of the scaled device data over a predetermined (or specified)period of time. Afterwards, the device management server computes thecurrent state value from the fleet metrics (S1103).

The orders in which the steps are performed in the aforementionedmethods are not limited to those shown in the examples of FIGS. 5, 7, 9and 11, and may be switched as long as similar results are achieved.Also, the methods illustrated in the examples of FIGS. 5, 7, 9 and 11may be implemented using any of the systems described in connection withFIGS. 1A-1D.

The aforementioned specific embodiments are illustrative, and manyvariations can be introduced on these embodiments without departing fromthe spirit of the disclosure or from the scope of the appended claims.In addition, elements and/or features of different examples andillustrative embodiments may be combined with each other and/orsubstituted for each other within the scope of this disclosure andappended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A device management system comprising: a processor; and a non-transitory computer readable medium storing one or more programs of instructions executable by the processor to configure said device management system to perform a method comprising: (a) retrieving, for a fleet of output devices managed by the device management system, data maintained in a device database of device data for managed devices; (b) determining plural fleet metrics of the fleet as a whole, based on one or more of (i) the data maintained in the device database for the fleet of output devices and (ii) data collected from the fleet of output devices; (c) determining, based on a comparison of (I) a normal state of the plural fleet metrics over a predetermined period of time with (II) a current state of the plural fleet metrics, whether changes to the fleet as a whole or to operations of the fleet as a whole exceed a predetermined alert threshold; and (d) generating, and outputting to a predetermined notification target, upon determining in (c) that the changes to the fleet as a whole or to the operations of the fleet as a whole exceed the predetermined alert threshold, an alert notification indicating a need to check the fleet of output devices, and providing, in the alert notification, a user-operable part to request a summary of the changes, by which the predetermined alert threshold was exceeded, the current state of each of the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) being an average value of each of said plural fleet metrics since a most recent determination of the plural fleet metrics.
 2. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the device data retrieved in (a) includes, for each output device in the fleet, a print volume of the output device, and the plural fleet metrics include a print volume of the fleet as a whole over a predetermined or specified amount of time.
 3. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) include number of devices in the fleet that are newly discovered over a predetermined or specified amount of time.
 4. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) include number of devices in the fleet that are newly disconnected over a predetermined or specified amount of time.
 5. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) include number of service calls corresponding to one or more devices in the fleet.
 6. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) include: (b1) a print volume of the fleet as a whole over a predetermined or specified amount of time; (b2) number of devices in the fleet that are newly discovered over a predetermined or specified amount of time; (b3) number of devices in the fleet that are newly disconnected over a predetermined or specified amount of time; and (b4) number of service calls corresponding to one or more devices in the fleet, and wherein the determination in (c) of whether changes to the fleet as a whole or to operations of the fleet as a whole exceed the predetermined alert threshold is based on a selected combination of the plural fleet metrics including (b1), (b2), (b3) and (b4).
 7. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the normal state of each of said plural fleet metrics determined in (b) is an average value of each of said plural fleet metrics over said predetermined period of time.
 8. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predetermined notification target is a host terminal hosting a device management application, and the device management application provides an application user interface on the client host terminal, and upon determination in (c) that the changes to the fleet or to the operations of the fleet exceed the predetermined alert threshold, the alert notification is pushed in (d) to the device management application, and the application user interface displays the alert notification on the host terminal.
 9. The device management system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the device management system includes a device management server, and the device management server transmits the plural fleet metrics to the device management application, when the device management application is connected to the device management server, and provides, via the application user interface provided on the host terminal, a dashboard gauge showing the current state of the plural fleet metrics as compared to the normal state of said plural fleet metrics.
 10. The device management system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: transmitting the plural fleet metrics to a client terminal hosting a device management application, when the client terminal is connected to the device management server; and providing, via the application user interface provided on the client terminal, a dashboard gauge showing a difference between the current state of the plural fleet metrics and the normal state of said plural fleet metrics as compared to the predetermined alert threshold.
 11. A device management system comprising: a device management server including a processor; and a non-transitory computer readable medium storing one or more programs of instructions executable by the processor to configure said device management server to perform a method comprising: (a) retrieving, for a fleet of output devices that provide printing services and are managed by the device management system, data maintained in a device database of device data for managed devices; (b) determining plural fleet metrics of the fleet as a whole, based on one or more of (i) the data maintained in the device database for the fleet of output devices and (ii) data collected from the fleet of output devices; (c) determining, based on a comparison of (I) a normal state of the plural fleet metrics over a predetermined period of time with (II) a current state of the plural fleet metrics, whether changes to the fleet as a whole or to operations of the fleet as a whole exceed a predetermined alert threshold; and (d) providing, via a device management application hosted on a client terminal to communicate with the device management server, an application user interface on the client terminal, and upon determining in (c) that the changes to the fleet as a whole or to the operations of the fleet as a whole exceed the predetermined alert threshold, pushing to the device management application an alert notification indicating a need to check the fleet of output devices, and causing the application user interface to display the alert notification on the client terminal and to provide a user-operable part to request a summary of the changes, by which the predetermined alert threshold was exceeded, the current state of each of the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) being an average value of each of said plural fleet metrics since a most recent determination of the plural fleet metrics.
 12. The device management system as claimed in claim 11, wherein in (d), upon the device management application communicating with the device management server, the device management server pushes the plural fleet metrics to the device management application; and provides, via the application user interface provided on the client terminal, a dashboard gauge showing the current state of the plural fleet metrics as compared to the normal state of said plural fleet metrics.
 13. The device management system as claimed in claim 11, wherein in (d), upon the device management application communicating with the device management server, the device management application downloads the plural fleet metrics from the device management server, and provides, via the application user interface, a dashboard gauge showing the current state of the plural fleet metrics as compared to the normal state of said plural fleet metrics.
 14. The device management system as claimed in claim 11, further comprising: a device data collection apparatus that collects data from the output devices, and based on a schedule or on demand, updates the data in the device database based on the collected data or transmit the collected data to the device management server.
 15. The device management system as claimed in claim 11, wherein each output device in the fleet includes an embedded module hosted on the output device to collect device data and based on a schedule or on demand, upload the collected data to the device database or transmit the collected data to the device management server.
 16. A method performed by a device management system including a device management server, the method comprising: (a) retrieving data maintained in a device database of device data for a fleet of plural output devices that provide printing services and are managed by the device management system; (b) determining plural fleet metrics of the fleet as a whole, based on one or more of (i) the data maintained in the device database for the fleet of output devices and (ii) data collected from the fleet of output devices; and (c) determining, based on a comparison of (I) a normal state of the plural fleet metrics over a predetermined period of time with (II) a current state of the plural fleet metrics, whether changes to the fleet as a whole or to operations of the fleet as a whole exceed a predetermined alert threshold; and (d) generating, and outputting to a predetermined notification target, upon determining in (c) that the changes to the fleet as a whole or to the operations of the fleet as a whole exceed the predetermined alert threshold, an alert notification indicating a need to check the fleet of output devices, and providing, in the alert notification, a user-operable part to request a summary of the changes, by which the predetermined alert threshold was exceeded, the current state of each of the plural fleet metrics determined in (b) being an average value of each of said plural fleet metrics since a most recent determination of the plural fleet metrics.
 17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the predetermined notification target is a device management application hosted on a client terminal, and the method further comprises: pushing an alert notification to the device management application hosted on the client terminal, when it is determined in (c) that the changes to the fleet or to the operations of the fleet exceed the predetermined alert threshold, to cause an application user interface provided by the device management application on the client terminal to display the alert notification on the client terminal.
 18. The method as claimed in claim 16, further comprising: providing, upon a device management application hosted on a client terminal communicating with the device management server, the plural fleet metrics, a dashboard gauge in the device management application, to show a difference between the current state of the plural fleet metrics and the normal state of said plural fleet metrics as compared to the predetermined alert threshold. 